Impressionable
by Iczoxochitl
Summary: Lack of communication can be numbing, almost deafening. Lightning is plagued by her past. She chooses silence. As she goes down, impressions layer on. They were connected mutually. A string of events dealing with politics & morals and failing relationships leads to one fateful night that complicates things even more. The hurting probably won't stop there. Eventual LightningXVanille
1. Chapter 1

_A/N- Guess who graduated from High school, bitch? _

_I did._

_A thousand thanks to **Darkgirl5** & **KaitonLocke** for BETA'ing me. :)_

* * *

**_Chapter 1_**

"Good morning, class!" The professor cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "Welcome to another exciting hour, or two, of Bioengineering."

Serah tried to settle in her seat. The new 'Back-to-School' feel and wonder was beginning to wear off fast by the 5th week. Being a freshman meant that new things were bound to pop up soon.

"Hiya, Serah!" Pearl chirped, taking a seat next to her.

"Hey..." Serah smiled. "What's up?" Serah and this girl totally clicked. She was kind of surprised how easy it was making new friends. In high school, she had friends but they were kind that only hung out with you in school. Most of the time they were scared away by-

Beeping, the hologram projector was activated. "Before we go into more depth, I'd like to show you real life examples of bioengineering applied to Cocoon and how it's changing life as we know it. Behind me you will see images of the Gapra Whitewood..."

_)(())(_

The female figure walked briskly through the university hallway, her blue cloak flowing behind her.

'B113, B114, B115...'

She noted the room number of every door she passed.

_)(())(_

"Playing with nature..." She looked back at Serah. "Not much." Despite her cheery disposition, Serah could see that she was incredibly uncomfortable. "W-what about you?"

"Snow almost caused me to be late this morning." Serah chuckled, making her do it too. "It's kind of-"

"Talkative, talkative..." The professor was now talking to her. He pushed up his glasses. "I'm assuming you two will be partners for the year, Ms. Farron and Ms. D-"

The door swung open. The professor fumbled his remote.

The woman took a step forward with sure confidence. The green pauldron on her shoulder glowed with three stripes signifying her rank as a Sergeant. She ignored the whispers and stares. Her cold gaze froze everything in its path as it swept across the room until finally melting away upon spotting the girl in the front row.  
"Serah..." Her combat boots clacked on the tile as she approached the desk. "You forgot your binder."

'Way to make a scene!' Her friend couldn't seem to take her eyes off of her sister.  
Serah's face reddened.  
"T-thank you, Lightning." Serah croaked.

"Must have been the oaf's fault," She sneered, making her way out.

"I-I'll see you at home!" Serah attempted to call out before she was completely gone.

He quickly put a tissue to his nose, almost thinking he had a nose bleed. "Maker..." Professor Hylem coughed. "Err... continuing on..."

* * *

It was a quiet day at the base but that wasn't about to stop him from having fun. He spun in his office chair from laughter. This definitely wasn't the first time he used the computer inappropriately for leisure in his office.

"Captain Rygdea." The woman saluted.

He recognized the husky voice. "Ah, Sergeant Farron. I've been waiting to see you all morning. Where have you been?"

She shrugged. "Dropping something off for my sister. And I know." Lightning answered. "And what is it?"

"It?" Rygdea thought to himself. "Oh yeah... The lady's a true tribal Pulsian..." He stood up from his desk and signaled her to follow him down the carpeted hallway."I wanted you to guide a new transfer for me."

Her eyes widened. Lightning didn't normally question assignments but her of all people?  
"What?"

"Yeah you!" Rygdea teased. "You'll have to get used to it because this is what you will do once you become commissioned. That isn't far away. Am I right?" Lightning nodded. Rygdea opened the door, handing her a clipboard. He stood at the door.

Lightning entered the room.  
She heard a broad laugh.

"How's it goin' cowboy?" The tanned woman laughed. "Where's Ciddy?"

Rygdea smiled at her warmly. They must have already been friends. "Probably pretending to be working but actually messaging his girlfriend. Everyone is excited to meet her from his and your description. The emerald eyes, cute smile, hair as r-"

The woman noticed someone else in the room.  
"Pink? Is that your natural hair color, love?"

'An accent...'  
Lightning got a good look at her while she was in a short conversation with the Captain. People from Pulse stood out around here. Her hair was wild and her jade eyes contrasted with her bronzed skin. Lightning wanted to laugh at the navy curtain drape thing she was wearing. Some huntress she was...

Lightning looked down at her clipboard, not replying to the question. "Name?"

Her smile faded, becoming serious.  
"What?"

"I said," Lightning stood up and repeated herself. "Name."

Wearing a cocky smile, the woman rose from her seat and got closer.  
"Oerba. Yun. Fang."

Lightning growled. She didn't need to get in her face like that.  
"Ok... Oerba. Give me a-"

"-Her name is Fang, Lightning. Fang Yun." Rygdea corrected with a chuckle.

Fang scoffed and looked over to Rygdea incredulously. "Who does this chick think she is?"

Lightning looked unwaveringly into her eyes. "Alright, Fang. Notable experience?"

"Look at my damn record," she remarked. "Me being from Gran Pulse and the Yun clan of hunters should be enough. We actually HAVE good fighters there, in ol' Oerba."

"Even that won't save you these days. You're miles behind us in technology." The Sergeant backed away, circling the woman.

"Pfft, technology... Because we don't eat genetically modified food or breathe filtered air?" Fang found that laughable. The food had no flavor here on Cocoon.

"I guess so..." Lightning was done. She wasn't interested in getting into a pissing contest with this immature woman. "Well Yun Oerba Fang..." The warrior woman huffed. "I'll be seeing you tomorrow. Come dressed and prepared for your fitness test. There's no way you could do anything in that blanket on you right now."

_)QQQ(_

The dishes were almost done.

Serah continued stare at the clock.  
"Umm... Snow...?"

He heard the worry in her voice. Snow turned away from the TV with a mouthful of chips.  
"Ya, babe?"

"Shouldn't you... get going?"

The light blond frowned as he rose from the couch.  
"Aww," Snow whined, "Do I have to? She never comes home at ten."

What if Lightning did though?

Serah felt a pair of arms wrap around her.  
"I really don't want to be sorry the day that she's on time."

The door opened.

"Or early..." Serah held her breath.  
Snow held his current position behind his girlfriend.  
"H-Hey, Sis!"

The eldest Farron took a single glance at the couple and marched to her room without a word.

Snow began to speak as soon as they heard the door shut. "See!" He chuckled, "She's already beginning to warm up to me n-"

"Snow!" Serah turned around to punch him lightly in the chest. "You do realize that you're the reason why Lightning had to bring my books to school earlier today, right?" Anyone else would leave, and in one piece, if they had a second chance to like this one.

Snow grabbed her hands.  
"We're cool. Light's over it by now."

Lightning hung up her cloak and was in the process of removing her combat boots when her mobile, on the bed, began to beep and vibrate rapidly.  
Lightning grabbed it and cleared her throat.  
"Farron."

Although there had been an uncomfortable pause, the caller wasted no time getting to their point.  
"We need to talk." The voice murmured. "I-I wanted to meet up with you tomorrow."

Lightning scoffed. "Was that a request?" Apparently the caller didn't find the sarcasm funny because the person remained silent.  
"What time? I get off early tomorrow, about noon..."

"I'll pick you up at 3."

Before she could open her mouth to speak, the call ended with a swift beep. Lightning stared at the screen display and chucked the phone back onto the bed.

* * *

_A/N- I'm quite a Newbie. While school was in, I felt so brain dead when it came to writing stories. Hopefully I will be cured these upcoming weeks. I still have the Senior Trip to SoCal this week so it isn't over completely._

_Questions? Comments? Message. Review._


	2. Dinner, Interrupted

_A/N-_

_I'm pretty relieved that I got my transcript request for college in. _

_I was worried about that._

_Thank you to all of those who Reviewed, Favorited, and Subscribed! ... or just read it. _

_A thousand thanks to **Darkgirl5** & **KaitonLocke** for BETA'ing me. :)_

* * *

**_Chapter 2_**

Lightning stared at the glowing luminescence of her office clock.

She was pushing four minutes, now going on five. Oerba Yun Fang was getting later by the second.

The phone began to ring like crazy, which kind of annoyed her since this always happened on her short days in particular. She picked it up and simply said, "I'm not taking appointments right now," and hung up. Whomever was calling would need to figure out to email or reach her tomorrow.

Lightning put her head down but this was all done in vain. A unison of cackling laughs coming from outside her door had been the source of the disturbance.

The door swung open.  
"So this guy came up to me yesterday. We were like '-the hell?' He seems like a total fruit, long purple hair and all..."

"Pretty crazy get-up, I suppose?"

Rygdea held his stomach from laughing so hard previously. "And?"

"You shoulda' seen my face when he asked me for my number."  
Fang imitated 'the face' from the day's event causing Rygdea to laugh once more.  
She did a little herself.  
"In all seriousness though, I think I'll keep in t-"

Lightning cleared her throat.

"Yun."

Fang turned around.  
Rygdea straightened up immediately. He knew one thing that ticked off Lightning Farron the most was shameless tardiness. Well, tardiness in general.

"It looks like you took my advice about the curtain drape..." Lightning briefly acknowledged the Oerban's attire. Her running shorts and shoes really showed off her athletic yet feminine form in that bronzed skin.  
Lightning growled, getting back on track.  
"Do you think that this is some kind of joke?"

"Psshh." Fang crossed her arms. "It's only been 5 minutes."

"Hah! _Only_? We're in the Cocooning Calvary here. 5 damn minutes late means 5 extra sets." Lightning scoffed, "Penalty."

Fang dropped her arms down with a gasp. "Extra? What the fu-"

"Sergeant Farron." Rygdea spoke, "I apologize. I was the cause for Fang's lack of punctuality this morning. Please allow me to assess her in your place."

Lightning thought to herself and then sighed. "Hmph. You're lucky this time then, Yun." She picked up her keys. "Go on."

_)QQQ(_

Rygdea taking the job for her meant free time.

Free time to get ahead on paperwork and stop at the little souvenir shop down the street. It had only just opened up for the morning.

The shopkeeper instantly set down his box and bowed upon Lightning's entrance.  
"How is the morning, Sergeant?"  
She wasn't in her formal uniform but he recognized her and that pink hair.

The soldier had already begun to search through a certain aisle. There were a vast array of names and symbols but not the one she wanted.  
She hesitated before asking, "Are these the only necklaces that you have?"

The man left to counter to help Lightning. "I'm pretty sure of that," he confirmed. "What were you looking for in particular?"

Lightning furrowed her eyebrows. "A gift... a pendant of a lightning bolt."

"Oh... I'm assuming that this is a surprise gift, correct?"  
Lightning nodded. "Well this store might be a bit too novelty for a woman with your status. May I suggest going to a jeweler and getting it custom done? It'll be extra special."

Lightning normally didn't give these kinds of 'gifts' to anyone besides Serah. She thought about it, but going somewhere else would mean extra work. "Time's the problem."

"Won't matter if the person isn't expecting it." The shop keep shrugged. "Dia Jewelry, or Dia Diamonds..." He slipped a card out of his pocket. "It has a better reputation than the rest despite foreign origins. It's the perfect place to go for your situation."

She stared at the man and the piece of cardboard for a long moment, weighing her options. As she narrowed her eyes on the fancy print, curiosity overrode her suspicions.

Lightning nabbed the card from the man's hand with a bland and very dry,  
"Thanks," before jetting out of the door. The next destination was home.

* * *

"You know what? It's kind of hard for me to imagine you with a beanie on." Serah giggled into the phone as she leaned against the refrigerator. "It's so Snow status."

They had been talking most of the morning so far.

"No, that's not a bad thing, Pearl." Serah frowned.  
"I think it's cute on girls. I'm actually looking forward to seeing when you-"

The younger Farron jumped when she saw the door slide open. At the sight of pink hair, her first reflex was to drop the phone lowly behind the counter.

"Uh..." She cleared her voice. "Hey Lightning..." Serah cheesed with ingenuity. "I wasn't expecting you home early today..."

"Yep." Her focus was elsewhere.

Lightning didn't seem up for much conversation. Right away, Serah watched her sister retire into her room. Maybe it would be better to leave her alone today.

_)QQQ(_

Lightning walked out the door, not bothering to acknowledge her sister once again. The airy corridor that connected the apartment together soon led to the outside. On normal days she didn't but for the first time in a while, she looked out of the transparent windows. In a striped tank top with short-shorts, she hoped there wouldn't be any unexpected weather.

Chills hit her body as she stepped into the air-conditioned lobby.

"Smile!" The girl's voice teased. "Shouldn't you be happy to see me?"

Lightning turned in the direction of the sound.  
"Yeul..." She breathed, her azure eyes instantly meeting ones of a purely emerald shade.  
"By your curt tone last night, I have every right to feel-" The soldier looked up. She didn't know what word to use. "Uneasy..."

The shorter girl grabbed the hand when she least expected it and pulled her out of the area into the parking lot.  
"Is Lightning Farron worried?" Lightning scoffed, which the girl giggled at.  
"On a serious note, I am sorry if I made you feel any such way. I was just..." Her green eyes lowered.

Lightning nodded as if she understood. "It's good to see an 18 year old actually displaying some real maturity."

That caused Yeul to smile a little, if only for a second.  
"Before we go anywhere, I need you to clear some things up for me."

"Fine." Lightning closed the car door.

"I..." Yeul started. It was much harder to speak suddenly with those azure eyes fixed on her. The soldier continued to wait patiently.  
"Most people know about your stance in politics. I'm Pulsian. Why do you bother to confide in me if you are so vehemently against interacting with my kind on this level?"

Lightning almost expected this. "You've earned your citizenship fairly." She answered, grabbing the girl's smaller hand. "I can't change your heritage or find a replacement. I like you for you."

Yeul thought it was sweet but she still wasn't sold. "But Lightning, how can I tr-" She had been pleasantly surprised. The soldier captured her lips in a tantalizing kiss that made her body heat all over.

"Besides," Lightning smirked when pulling away, "We aren't official yet." She suggestively played with the girl's gem pendant on her chest. "Unless you want to be..."

"I..." Yeul's pale cheeks reddened. After that kiss she had trouble processing what was going on.

"Do you, Yeul?"

* * *

The large blond stood behind the stove. He raised the pot top, releasing a stream of hot steam.  
"Hmm, still not quite al-"

"SNOW!"  
The front door swung open with force. The first one through, Serah ran in panting.  
"How are you doing?"

The blond breathed out. Her scream had startled him.  
"It's fine. Everything's fine. It's almost there." He cleared his throat. "What's the rush?"

Serah smiled," Oh noth-"

Lebreau stepped forward chuckling. "Serah here thought that you were going to burn the apartment down."

"Really?" Snow looked to Serah. It was... disappointing. "Psshh. Come on... I know how to make noodles."

"You mean fettuccini?" The barmaid corrected smartly.

"Ya, whatever..." Snow answered with not much care. Lebreau rolled her eyes. "I think it's about done now anyways— Did you get the sauce?"  
He caught the thrown bottle midair and dumped the liquid cheese over the pasta.  
"Score!"

Snow had a habit of being reckless, one that was almost tiring for those who were there to witness.

"I'm going to take a nap on the couch while it finishes." Another voice spoke up. The three had almost forgotten about their other companion who had been standing at the door.

"Pulsian food…" Lebreau rubbed her temples. "It was Diamond's or whatever-her-name-is's idea." She put a hand on her hip. "Aren't you supposed to be with your big shot boyfriend tonight, Pulse?"

It was another of Lebreau's attempts to pick on the new person. The said girl fixated her eyes on the glossy floor. Although Pearl didn't have much to say about it, she felt a bit ashamed. "Umm... He became busy with work… and cancelled."

Lebreau's catty smirk had feigned. Regret instantly washed over.

"Hmph… Snow would never do that to me." Serah commented amidst the silence. Snow's eyebrow twitched.

Homesickness wasn't the only thing that was getting to her. There wasn't much point in responding. "Don't be too loud. Alright?" Pearl plopped herself on the cream sofa.

Lebreau nodded. "We'll wake you." The barmaid turned back to the couple waving a dismissive hand.

Unknown to her, the two had already begun quarreling.

Serah tugged on Snow's dress shirt as she called out to him. "Like... Seriously, Snow?"

"Like... Seriously, Serah?" The blond shot back. He picked up the stirring spoon with an exaggerated angry swipe.

"I didn't mean it like that... I don't think that you're an-"

Snow shook his head. "-Leave it, Serah." He barked.

Lebreau had no idea to what the hell was going on. "Here we go again..."

"That was so uncalled for, Serah! She's your friend!"

"What are you talking about?"

The barmaid sighed. "Should have waited for Yuj..." Hetook an abnormally long time to get ready compared to other males. She hated being stuck with these two alone sometimes. Waiting for him would have been worth it.

Snow only blinked at her as he continued to stir the contents in the pot.  
"Huh?"

The younger Farron wiped the forming tears from her eyes. Serah thought she heard something from the barmaid also. "D-Did you say something, Lebreau?"

"..." The woman leaned on the counter with one of the most awkward smiles on her face.  
"The fettuccini seems... about done." She rushed to grab plates and silverware from the cupboard.  
"Let's set up the table! Shall we?"

Serah raised a confused eye brow but nodded, eventually. She grabbed the spoon, left by Snow, and began to distribute the portions into that plates that Lebreau had taken down for them. The number of plates, 4, reminded her about their other guest tonight, Pearl.  
"Ya... We'll need to make sure to save some for-"

Serah locked eyes with the pink haired woman across the room. From the coldness she received earlier, Serah wondered about her sister and why she decided to drop in, but remained silent, watching her.

Lightning walked in very cautiously while she pulled someone along behind her.

Serah's eyes darted to Lebreau's as to confirm with each other that they were seeing the same thing.

Lebreau smirked, "So you're back?"

"Serah," She spoke up.  
Lightning stepped forward, ignoring the usual comment from the brunette barmaid.  
"I have something to tell you..."

Lightning gently pulled the girl from behind her who nervously brushed back her hair as she continued to hold onto the soldier's hand.

Lebreau gasped.

Snow looked on awestruck. He had no intention of getting into this.

The younger Farron opened her mouth with hesitance.

Pale skin... long silver hair... green eyes... this girl looked familiar yet she couldn't remember the name. However, Serah knew exactly what this was about and her blood spiked. She crossed her arms.  
"You have another little 'follower' I suppose?" She mocked.

Lightning looked at her sternly. "Don't be immature."

"Don't be immature?" Serah repeated, setting down her spoon. "I'm not a child, Lightning. I know a pattern when I see one."

Yeul gave a questioning look to Lightning but she only shrugged.  
The soldier cleared her throat.  
"What pattern?"

"Lead an innocent girl on. Screw her and then dump her," Lebreau recited. Lightning glared at the woman. Her fist clenched as she went on.  
"For such an independent lady, you'd do or say anything for a lay..."

The soldier chuckled to herself. "By the way that you dress, isn't that what you do most of the time? How much do you make in one night?" Lightning scoffed, "Shut up, _Libra_."

And now Lightning mocked her name. She felt the urge to get in soldier's face but was held back. Lebreau shook her head. "You're incredibly pathetic..."

"This is none of your business. You're lucky that I didn't kick your asses out of here when I came home."

"Hmph. Fuck you."  
It's not like she cared what Lightning did but for Serah's sake, Lebreau chose not to say anything else.

The silence that followed after was chilling. Lightning turned her attention back to the main person she came for.  
"I tried my best with Yeul here and know, with my heart, that this isn't some fling."

Serah kept her eyes fixed on the hardwood floor of the living room.

"I've gotten over myself."

A dry laugh resonated from Serah.  
"I'm quite sure you haven't." Snow and Lebreau felt like laughing as well. The younger Farron cut her eyes at the couple. "I wonder what she made you do..."

The statement was directed towards the girl yet Lightning answered, stepping in front of her. "Nothing."

Serah went for something less offensive.  
"How did you two meet?"

Too bad she wasn't going to tell her then and there. Lightning rolled her azure eyes with no plans of answering.

"Fine."  
Serah got it immediately and stomped towards her room with her boyfriend following.  
"I don't want any part of this!" She shouted before the door slammed.

Clearly, that didn't help with the situation.

Yeul looked at Lightning speechless. She smiled but in her eyes, hurt could be seen. Lightning wanted to-

"-Look what you did now. You're so unreasonable."

Lightning had already begun to exit out into the hallway with her new lover. She chose to ignore the catty barmaid once again.

Lebreau took deep breaths to calm herself down. The way Lightning Farron treated her younger sister sometimes angered her. All the secrecy and the tension... the arrogant attitude... Lebreau had to be the one to comfort Serah when Snow couldn't. She would take shots at Lightning every reasonable chance she got but Lebreau would have to let the woman know how she felt someday.

Her mind removed itself from the current events during this intermission and refocused back on what they were doing previously.

The fettuccini was done. However, Lebreau read the time on the glowing wall clock. Serah's college friend had to be home. It was what she had remembered.

"Umm… Hey…" Lebreau awkwardly nudged her.

There was no response. She must have been in a pretty deep sleep. The barmaid shook Pearl with more vigor. This was incredibly awkward. She didn't know the girl that well in the first place and now she was stuck with waking her up.

"Hmm?" she yawned. Pearl had awoken, rubbing her eyes in an attempt to soothe her drowsiness. Where the hell was she?

Lebreau cleared her throat, annoyance obvious at the current disorientation. "You should probably get going," she said as if the shoving of the Tupperware into the girl's arms wasn't enough.

_)QQQ(_

The soldier held onto Yeul, trying to redeem herself from the harsh accusations.

"Serah doesn't know what she's talking about… neither does her slut of a friend. "

There wasn't a desire to discuss it, at least not right now. Staring past Lightning's shoulder, Yeul stood limply in her arms. Lightning finally kept quiet and looked back.

Far ahead of them, they watched a person stumble from the Farrons' door.

The moment her eyes met the icy glare of the pink-haired woman, she almost experienced a heart murmur.

"Hmph. It must be one of Snow's bum friends." Lightning grumbled; this concluded from their appearance, mainly the beanie. Lightning was ready to pounce. Like Snow, his friends needed to be put into their places also. The stupid hat wasn't the only thing that she noticed. Her eyes were similar to Yeul's, even more emerald in shade.

The girl could feel eyes on her as she tried to shuffle past the pair. She attempted to resist giving in to the strong gaze yet staring at the ground and not watching where she was going brought more problems. The realization came too late. A vase stood directly in her path.

Lightning observed intently. She waited for that one, stupid move.

The girl bumped into the regal piece of pottery. Hard. She almost tipped it over but scurried to catch it in its fall. The girl wiped her forehead and took a deep breath.

The soldier let out a small growl and stepped forward.

"Lightning." Yeul clutched at her top. "Don't." The taller woman turned to her. That girl was getting away. "We'll talk later. Alright?"

* * *

_A/N- ugh, School-related tasks. At least I can write now with the transcript thing out of the way. Yay for Summer Break! _

_Questions? Comments? Message. Review._


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N-_

_Holy crap. I get a break for 9 freaking days before I have to go back to SB for the Fall._

_I'm so brain dead._

_Thank you to all of those who Reviewed, Favorited, and Subscribed! ... or just read it._

_A thousand thanks to **Darkgirl5** for BETA'ing me. :)_

**_Question: Where da fuck is Vanille?! _****___**

**Chapter 3: The Degradation of an Office**

"_Number 13." He shook the young girl's shoulder and echoed, "Number 13!"_

_She sat up, rubbing her eyes. "Huh?"_

"_Get up." The captain ordered. " The velocopter's about to land." _

_XIII stared at her gloved hands. She stared at her tight, armored body suit._

_Had she really made it this far?_

"_First time?" The captain noticed her nervousness. The girl leaned back in her seat. "Second time?" She finally nodded. "Well I'll be damned. You were chosen for this, kiddo." He handed her bag over to her. "You'd better not choke, soldier… No matter what gets into the way."_

_Of course she wouldn't. _

_The sound of metallic blades slicing through the thin air and floating dust and grass echoed through the cabin as the velocopter came to a complete landing._

_He scratched his facial stubble before raising up a hand. "Alright, we've come to a full stop. Out we go. File up."_

_XIII filed in line. She shielded her eyes from the harsh sunlight. The sky had been pale and cloudless._

_The march started down the hard, graying asphalt. The farm was a mile away and this happened to be the safest place to land at the time._

_Onlookers caught sight of the group above from their windows. Many passed on whispers. It was almost as if people stopped whatever they were doing on the side of the road. All were in a trance._

_ "What are they doing here?"_

_ "It's the Guardian Corps… from Cocoon…"_

_She had to keep her eyes forward. Focus. The equipment was beginning to weigh down. It was so damn hot under this helmet._

_There was scuffling and movement behind them. It continued._

_As they came closer to their targeted destination, the ruckus grew louder. Throughout this march, the environment's landscape had radiated from city to rural country._

_The massive scuffling sounded like a stampede of chocobos. Was there a group of people following them now?_

_More like a mob._

"_Squad, Halt!" The Captain bellowed deeply from within his gut for the troop to stop at the property gate. He walked to the back of line._

_The crowd was waiting._

_A middle- aged man moved in front of them. His kilt and loose curly strands of hair remained unmoved in the dead wind._

"_Welcome to Oerba." The man spoke. "I suppose…" _

_The captain raised his hand. "Standby." They shifted side-by-side. The troop went into a more relaxed but still alert form attention. _

_His eyes went back to the lone man. "Is there a problem?"_

_The man answered with a question. "Why did they send you here?" _

"_You want Cocoon to pay for something. Compensation…" The captain spat in a mocking manner. "You're town has been pestering us. YADA YADA YADA- There are doubts about the true scale of damage and our liability. We were sent to investigate. That's all."_

_ "That's all?" A random voice in the crowd repeated. "You have got to be fucking kidding me. Look at this!" _

_The captain had tooted the wrong tune to the villagers he was quickly starting to realize it. "The Guardian Corps isn't the Sanctum. As far as I know, we have no part in what supposedly happened."_

"_No part?" The man chuckled, pacing towards the captain. He kicked opened the gate, not exactly a polite way of inviting someone in. " We know damn well that you stole our land and are using it in your little snake's nest this very moment."_

_He was done talking. The Cocconian squad followed their captain in._

The tall dry grass rasped against XIII's boots as she stepped through it.

_As she crested the hill, she got her first view of the damage: it was a horror scene. She was instantly sick to her stomach. Land had literally been ripped from earth. The bodies of dismembered animals lay lifeless in the field, rotting._

_What the hell did this? It couldn't have been human._

_The crowd certainly didn't stay behind._

"_Hey!" _

_A voice behind… Was that lady talking to _her_? How could she recognize a person in these suits?_

"_XIII…" the Captain sighed under his breath._

"_I think I found this bitch." She snarled, "Ya, you!" The woman pointed, "The skinny one."_

_The girl turned around. The woman hurried up the hill. The others watched on even if she was a little too close for their mate's comfort. She tried to move back but the woman XIII wanted to push her off when she grabbed under the rim of XIII's helmet. _

_The woman pressed her nose into the glass, beginning to tug roughly. "Is this the bitch that goes by the name Thunder or Sparky?" _

_The captain looked on. "What's the problem?"_

_It was hot. The jerks to her helmet were becoming irritating. Her arm cocked back._

"_This slut thinks that she can get away with messing around with my-"_

"_Get the fuck off of me."_

_A strike to the gut. The woman stumbled._

_No one had a clue to what was going on._

"_Hey! Hey! Hey!"_

"_Stop that now!"_

"_Shut up."_

"_XIII!" The captain called but he didn't do anything._

_Using both hands, XIII fixed and adjusted her helmet back to comfort from the tampering._

_Out of nowhere, the woman came back when to take advantage of the unguarded position. She tackled her to the ground and took the next punch. _

* * *

Lightning monitored the clock on the wall like a hawk. She was never late and had an hour to spare this morning before the young Sergeant had to be present at the Calvary office for duty.

She did not expect anyone to be up this early, or the homely aroma of pancakes and sausage.

Lightning watched Serah, who had sat down at the appearance of the soldier, from afar. She cleared her throat with slight anxiety looming. "What are you doing?" There was a hope of avoiding her younger sister today. "Serah," She called again, trying to generate a response.

The girl sat at the table calmly. "Just eating breakfast…"

As her suspicions arose, so had a thin eyebrow. Lightning opened her mouth to speak but was cut off before she could say anything else.

"That's extra." A plate full of heart was placed across from her and Serah could predict Lightning's inquiry. She tried to clarify, "I made too much on accident."

And quite coincidental. "Are you sure it's just 'extra'?" Lightning emphasized.

Serah swallowed. "Umm, Yeah…" She looked away from her sister. Lightning had probably figured it out. Serah didn't want to give in first like always, not this time. She covered the food with a neighboring spare plate all while cutting her eyes at Lightning. "Why do you keep on staring at me? Don't you have to be somewhere?"

Lightning didn't answer. She left without saying goodbye once again.

**_)QQQ(_**

The vehicle slowed to a halt as Lightning parked her vehicle.

A private parking lot at basement Level.

The Calvary never really felt like a serious military environment to her with its very office-like setting. Compared to the other branches, this unit bore the hell out of her.

She gazed into the side mirror. The quiet engine purred. The pair of steel-gray eyes watched her, remained fixated on her. A chrome sports car had pulled past her in a parking space boldly marked with the word 'General'.

The way he looked at her… it bothered her.

Lightning grabbed her bag from the passenger seat and held it in her lap. She looked forward, not ready to get out.

Sometimes he made her wonder… Soon enough there was tapping on the glass. "Sergeant Farron?"

Lightning let out a sigh, not to be obvious, and rolled down the window. "Commander, Sir."

Cid wore a small smile, though it couldn't exactly be seen. He was so tall that Lightning's window cut the upper-half of his torso from view.

"How are you this morning?"

Lightning huffed, blowing the bangs from over her eyes. "I don't know, Sir."

"Well we all have problems day to day. Don't we?" He hummed. "I noticed that your gunblade is still in the armory. You've been off of your probation for a while now, haven't you?"

She side-glanced at him. "Yes… Sir."

"No more being stuck in the office anymore..." Cid seemed enthusiastic. "You, out of all people, should be happy. Just remember, not everyone is as dumb as you believe them to be, Lightning. I know that you aren't the office kind of soldier and you've seemed to have cleaned up your behavior, somewhat. We have an Eden patrol team lined up that needs a leader with your kind of work-"

"-I'm not interested in fieldwork anymore."

He paused. "Would you be willing to join us on the Lindblum? I know that ever since you were transferred here, there were restrictions and it wasn't a possibility."

Lightning exited her car, slinging her work bag across her back. "I'm fine."

"How about training?"

Lightning didn't answer.

"You're wasting your talent. Hanging up the gunblade?" He questioned. "I had you on the list to be commissioned. Not interested in that either?"

"I can't really say," She shrugged.

"Hmm…" Cid cupped his chin momentarily. "We'll see. Thank you for your time, Sergeant."

_Buzz Buzz_

The pink-haired sergeant sat at her desk, staring at the vibrating mobile. Ripples were created in her still full cup of coffee, which she didn't necessarily want but her subordinates had insisted that it 'Coffee Wednesday'. The number was unrecognized and if they had known better, they would either leave a message or call her office line. The device continued to bang itself on the oak. She wondered what Yeul was doing at the moment.

_Buzz Buzz Buzz_

Lightning moved her eyes upward as a voice boomed through the intercom. "Sergeant Farron, General Raines would like to see you in his office please."

The vibrating finally stopped.

**_)QQQ(_**

The annoying people that she had to see every day…

One foot out of the door and she was already instantly met by an oddly-dressed man in very baggy, adorned pants and a fur vest. Lightning heaved a deep sigh. "You are?"

"Kreiss. Noel Kreiss." The young man held out a tanned hand to Lightning which wasn't shaken. Noel pulled it back in an attempt to lessen the stinging awkwardness. "I've been trying to get a hold of you."

"Tch," Lightning frowned, "So you're the one who has been blowing up my phone?"

"Blow up?" Noel looked at her with surprise. "Is that how Cocconians communicate? By blowing up things?" He questioned. "Sorry, Miss. I would never participate in such reckless behavior, at least not for attention. I prefer to write letters. "

'Idiot…' Lightning shook her head and held her brow. "Why are you here?" She groaned, already becoming tired of the conversation. She began her walk towards her original destination. Noel quickly followed.

"I was referred to you, Sergeant Farron." He answered. "I'm sure everyone knows of you wearing the coveted, legendary cape and being one of the very few to wield the gunblade. You have an amazing record in the Cocoonian military, especially for someone your age and gender."

Lightning glared at him. "Get to the point."

"I couldn't get to General Raines." He finally admitted. "I want to petition the new immigration laws proposed by the Sanctum to strictly prohibit almost anyone and anything Pulsian. Some of our feelings about Cocoonians may not be the sweetest but we actually enjoy the trade with Cocoon and learning opportunities gained. It's ridiculous and absolutely self-destructive on Cocoon's part. It can't continue to rely on the Fal'Cie to generate everything."

"It makes sense." Lightning shrugged. "It's just that no one wants to say it." Noel's blue eyes lit up in anticipation for her to continue. He might have made it through to the Sergeant. "The very truth of the matter is that we don't need Pulse, nor do we need more people mooching off of our infrastructure and system." Noel's jaw dropped as his face inflamed.

"I'm really trying to be nice and polite here, lady." He emitted through gritted teeth. "All this tension and animosity needs to be resolved! Complete separation will only make things worse. If we could just combine our resources, everyone would benefit greatly."

"You're barking up the wrong tree." Lightning maintained.

Noel squinted his eyes. "If you don't believe in world peace then why work under Cid Raines?"

Lightning flipped her cloak. "That's none of your business," She hissed. "Besides, I don't get into politics while I'm at work." Lightning stepped up to the front desk. "When I'm gone, here's your chance to schedule an appointment with the Commander."

Noel stood there. He didn't quite understand.

"HELLO! Sergeant Farron…" The secretary stood up from her seat in a hurry. "It wouldn't be wise to just walk in. Fang Yun is in there."

As her face tightened, Lightning walked past her, never breaking stride.

"Y-you can wait in the seats over in the lobby?" The poor woman scrambled.

What she wanted to do was just burst through the door, cut the Yun's visit short, and get this call over with but… she didn't. That would have been out of line. She paused. "I'll wait in the median room."

**_)QQQ(_**

Pictures of past Calvary leaders in full military regalia, although few, lined the ivory walls. She walked past it all. Lightning placed a glove-hand on the adorned doorknob.

Having the eyes of the highly ranked on her wasn't exactly in her wishes.

Muffled laughing and movement could be heard through the large door.

Lightning shook her head. "Must be having a party in there," she groaned sarcastically. Looking at the portraits wasn't an option to kill time. She had already seen all there was to be seen in this room.

Lightning stood there waiting patiently in silence. The door swung open with much weight. Fang keenly scanned the area before fully stepping out. The moment the wild-haired woman saw Lightning, a smirk snuck its way onto her face. Lightning stood there quietly, waiting and eying Oerba Yun Fang for any suspicious movements. A tanned arm held the door open for her, however.

"Go on." Fang urged. "Am I not allowed ta' be polite?"

Lightning didn't move.

Fang continued on regardless. "I passed."

Lightning's eyebrow twitched. There was _no_ way. "… Congratulations…" Her smile couldn't have been more plastic with a combination of awkward.

A Pulsian barbarian like Fang really worked alongside her now? It was what the world had finally come to.

Lightning felt uncomfortable as Fang now continued to stare as if she were examining her. "Were you in a modeling magazine?" Fang finally spoke, "It feels like I've seen you around before… Like on the billboards and signposts out in Oerba." She scratched her head. "Somewhere."

'What?' She couldn't tell if that was a genuine question or Fang's own unique way of flirting, **god forbid**, which happened to be awkward. Finally taking a step, she could still feel the Pulsian's eyes following her. She kept on forward into the General's chamber.

In the minor ruckus, Lightning turned the knob and closed the door behind her lightly. Rygdea scrambled off of his seat on _Cid's_ desk.

"Sir." Lightning went into tight salute, waiting to be acknowledged.

Captain Rygdea combed through his messy hair. "Prompt as always, Sergeant Farron," He chuckled.

The poised Calvary Commander sat in his desk chair. He twirled and fidgeted with his metallic pen before finally looking beyond it. "Sergeant Farron." He nodded.

Lightning broke her salute and moved in closer.

With a straight face, the Brigadier General held out an ungloved hand. He spoke calmly, "Have a seat."

That's what she did all day.

Sit.

And Lightning was growing tiring of it, yet she took the offer. She _had_ to.

Lightning studied the man across from her. His hands remained clasped together on top of his desk, staring back at her. She had worked with him in close quarters on a couple occasions but honestly didn't know much about him. Cid Raines could be very unreadable at times and therefore, unpredictable and almost quite dangerous in her eyes. One of the few who had managed to read him correctly would was Rygdea.

_***Buzz Buzz***_

Lightning grabbed her pocket. Her communicator seemed to be going off again. She attempted to ignore it.

He waited for a moment before clearing his throat. "Lightning."

She answered, "Yes, sir?"

His eye's remained trained on her. Lightning sat still in the silence.

He finally let out a deep breath. "I need advice." He spoke.

Lightning drew her brows together. "You have advisors." Her tone had sharpened more than she had meant to as the Commander's face went terse. She immediately bowed her head apologetically. "I apologize for that, your Eminence." In usual cases, she would have saved the attitude for Rygdea.

Commander Raines let out a deep chuckle, clapping his hands together. "A little sassiness there?" He grinned. "I've been told that you're experienced and quite popular."

"With?..." She wasn't sure about the 'popular' part but his statement was vague, nevertheless.

"Women… women trouble… anger," He listed off the top of his head. "I hope you can understand why I simply can't go to my advisors."

"So you need relationship advice?" Lightning continued. "Still… why from me?" She wasn't expecting to be called back after their conversation earlier in the morning.

Rygdea covered his face to conceal his laughter. "Remember when you were younger and I used to work on Amodar's force?" Rygdea wheezed. "Fang brought you up and I couldn't help but share some of the stories."

"Amodar's force?" Lightning's face went blank until she finally realized what he was alluding to. Her muscles became rigid. "_Shit_," She cursed under her breath. "I don't know what you're talking about, Sir." She stared at the carpet in horror. Being caught off guard… a rarity for Lightning Farron. She her closed her eyes for a second and took a quick deep breath. Lightning needed to readjust now. She felt a pat on her shoulder.

_Rygdea…_

She began to notice a difference in him. The Captain was already pretty lax, but now especially around Fang, he threw workplace professionalism and proper behavior out the window. "Relax, Farron. I didn't get detailed you naughty fox."

Grinning more, Commander Raines pulled a lunch bag from under his desk. "I'll give you a sandwich."

"Giving away the lunch that _she_ made for you will make her even angrier." Rygdea joked.

Did Rygdea just call her a 'naughty fox'? And now the Commander knew of her generally, not only reserved for unholy but impure, escapades of her younger years?

Embarrassing.

In this setting, it couldn't become more unbearable or uncomfortable. She couldn't show that it was however.

That was enough.

Lightning shook her head and watched the Commander across from her, with her trademark stoicism.

"Sergeant Farron…" Cid repeated for the third time.

Lightning blinked. "Yes."

"Will you take me up on my offer?"

"I might be able to help you. Not on the grounds of incredibly _fallacious_, tall tales but on ones of me being a female," She clarified. "I still do not understand what your specific question is."

"His girlfriend has a high-tolerance for B.S.," Rygdea quipped.

Cid flicked his wrist, a disregard for the comment. "You know what? She needs to chill out. I'll just leave it and not bring it up. She'll get over it in no time." Lightning guessed that he was referring to his secret girlfriend. She was often a topic of her workmates in their gossip of Cid.

Alright!

He found a solution on his own. Now it was time for Lightning to leave!

Her inner joy was cut short. Rygdea sighed. "What happened again, Cid?"

"Since the other night…"Cid examined his nails. "She hasn't been talking to me much."

"Okay…" Lightning prodded, "Do you have any idea why?"

He shrugged. "I cancelled dinner."

"Why?" Lightning rubbed her brow.

"I told her work but I was actually at the gym."

"With whom?" _Someone_ needed to learn how to elaborate.

"Gadot," Cid answered once again, "A new friend of mine introduced me to him."

Lightning grimaced at the name. She hadn't experienced this type of attitude from him before. When did Commander Raines become such a meat head or had he always been that way? He was starting to remind her of Snow, with rudeness. His eyes were glued to his nails the entire discussion.

"Call her. Apologize. Make new plans." Lightning surmised.

Simple.

She had to walk him through something so obvious.

Cid had finally detached his eyes from his hands. "I'll consider it."

Bull. Shit. Was she talking to a wall? Only an idiot who _wanted_ to purposely ruin a relationship wouldn't.

"I'm sure you will," Lightning muttered.

_***Buzz Buzz Buzz***_

Rygdea stared at the pink-haired offender's pocket. "It would seem that Sergeant Farron needs to leave, Commander."

Raines waved his hand limply. "Dismissed."

Lightning rose from her seat.

"Does your girl get rides in that sports mobile?"

He shook his head, "No. She prefers to take the public transportation."

* * *

It was a weekday.

Parking shouldn't have been this much of a pain.

Lightning felt a headache coming on. She lowered her head to rest it on the steering wheel. It was quickly interrupted by a _chime_ from her communicator.

She read the new message on the screen:

'_Where are you?'_

'_Parking lot.'_ They decided to meet at the race track, Eden Stadium.

A response came quickly. _'Should I come out there?'_

'_I guess.'_ A very unenthusiastic reply.

Lightning had waited all day for this however.

Her eyes found Yeul walk through the stadium gates. The girl waved when she had finally spotted Lightning's vehicle from work.

Her eyelids were heavy. Lightning tapped the leather on the rim of the steering wheel slowly as Yeul opened the passenger door.

Lightning glanced over. "Hi."

She smiled, getting settled. "Hi, Lightning…"

That was the end of their conversation. Without a word said, they sat in the car watching a lower ranked security guard snooze in his velomobile.

"I like what you're wearing." Lightning suddenly said.

"Umm…"Yeul had been puzzled. "T-thank you." All it was a cropped top and shorts. Plus it surprised her; the soldier rarely gave compliments like that.

What were they here for again? Surely not a 'date'.

It would be expected that Lightning would be a straight-forward person but it was apparent that she was dancing around real issue and was horribly failing at it.

Yeul rubbed her back. "You look exhausted. Bad day at work?"

Bad? It was stupid.

"Lightning…" Yeul clasped her hands together. "About the other night… About what Serah said—Let's ta-"

Both of their heads turned. The car door was opened roughly as the door itself banged the hinge.

"Yeul! Get the fuck out of the car!" One hand was braced on his sword's scabbard.

Lightning scoffed. Swords were so Pulsian, so low-tech.

"Now." He snarled. His voice was deep.

Lightning proceeded to remove her seatbelt. Yeul held down of her working hands.

Purple eyebrows were fixed in a contorted line of rage as he heaved. "What the hell is this?"

"Sorry…" She whispered. It wasn't clear if it was to Lightning or the fuming man.

Yeul closed her eyes before letting go. "I have to go." She exited the car and not too soon was there an arm of security around her shoulder.

The man pointed at Lightning menacingly. "Lightning Farron…"

Those were the last words before walking off with Yeul.


	4. Familiar but Unavailable

_A/N-  
Lack of responses... Maybe you all are secretly reading and watching out for Vanille, or this truly is a wretched and damned story, conjured up by me.  
Every time Iczoxochitl updates- Oh, the horror! _

_A thousand thanks to **Darkgirl5** for BETA'ing me. :)_

_**Chapter 4: Unavailable and Familiar; Familiar but Unavailable**_

Lightning peered out of her office door as she normally did. Seemingly enough, the coast was clear. She began to hustle.

"Oi! Sergeant Farron!"

She had no idea what was up with this guy and her. Grumbling, Lightning turned away, bent her head down, and tried to walk faster. Hopefully if she pretended that she didn't hear them, they would stop.

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" He began to tail her.

No.

Lightning stopped, rolling her eyes. "I'm not available at the moment." She answered.

She was out in the hallway to get her mail, not chit-chat.

"T-That skirt looks really nice on you by the way!"

"Tch…" They never quit. There was only one person on her mind

* * *

Lightning made it to the mailroom, finally, but not without the tedious task of people dodging and avoidance. Her planning and timing was right. The place was empty.

She let out a huge breath and inserted the key into her assigned box. With a turn, it clicked open. What she pulled out was hefty.

Lightning frowned as she shuffled through the stack, the bulk of it being random letters from who-knows and request forms. She set them aside. For the sake the people, she would get to them eventually. A crisp, cream envelope embellished in fancy script stuck out from the rest.

Lightning held it up, examining the stationary. "Hmph."

Upon opening the envelope she paused.

Air banged through the vents. The air conditioner had turned on.

"Ey…"

Lightning crossed her eyes.

Rygdea.

He nudged her with a goofy smile on his face. "Don't you look cute today with your collared shirt and neatly wrapped kerchief. We're almost matching!"

She wasn't going to check to confirm it.

Rygdea's eyes caught onto the piece of stationary within her hands. "Ah… so you've been invited to the Military Elite Dinner," He mused, "Super formal. Not exactly a rager. You have to come dressed really nice and whatnot. "

That's what this letter was for? An invitation to a dinner with Cocoon's finest military leaders? Lightning didn't understand why she was invited. She was only a sergeant yet to be commissioned.

"Did anyone tell you yet?" Rygdea asked. Lightning raised an eyebrow at him. "You'll be partnered up with Fang to work on Cid's campaign for Primearch."

Lightning's heart stopped. Working with Fang… Who the hell signed her up?

"Fun sounding news...I know. You seem thrilled, like heart-stopping excited." He patted her back. "I'll let you in on something." Rygdea was walking the fine line between sarcasm and sincerity. He continued smiling. "Cid doesn't err… mind what you did in the past whether it be sleeping with multiple people or fighting like a hot-head." Lightning rolled her eyes. "He doesn't care much. Alright? You have a reputation for being…" Rygdea grabbed his chin in thought for the right word. "… Unreachable, as of late. He thought that you couldn't handle it and were unsuitable for the job at first but after hearing from Advocate Noel Kreiss about how helpful you were to him, you ended up being selected."

No.

Selected? Lightning wasn't too delighted.

Rygdea patted Lightning's back. "Whatever the campaign stands for, your feelings are your feelings." He headed for the room door. "I'll contact you for the information meeting." He shouted last before exiting.

After slamming the mailbox door, Lightning grabbed her stuff and soon followed out.

She leaned on the wall in vacant hallway, staring at her phone. It had been a week of failing in trying to get a hold of Yeul.

Lightning held the device to her ear.

The ringing tone went on… and on…

Her grip on the phone tightened.

"The person that you have called is unavailable."

That was it for her.

"Please try ag-"

* * *

Serah sat in the living room chair alone. Alone. Something that she wasn't used to being. Snow was usually always around. She must have really pissed him off this time.

_**Chime Chime Chime**_

Who set the house phone to that hideous ringing tone?

Oh, yeah… she did. Lightning wouldn't have had the time to care about that.

Serah pulled herself from the couch and went to the kitchen counter. She pressed the green talk button.

"H-Hello?"

"Lightning?" The other line asked.

"No." Rubbing her brow, she thought she had told Lightning to stop giving out their house number. "This is her sister. Serah."

"Oh…" They paused. "She has a sister?"

"Yes." Serah scoffed. She couldn't guess why it had mattered to them.

"How old are you?"

Serah held the phone away from her ear and stared at it. "What?" She couldn't believe this guy. "Who is this?"

"I mean- Is she there? It's Noel. Noel Kreiss."

She shook her head. "Okay, Noel… well no, she isn't home right now."

That should have been the end of it.

"Seriously, how old are you?"

"Why do you want to know?" serah rolled her eyes and sighed.

"I didn't know that she had a sister. That's all." He waited for a response. "So… are you going to tell me?"

"No. Have a good day."

"Alright. Bye."

She threw the phone back on the base.

"Creep."

* * *

Lightning stared through the display glass. She let out a breath. Shitty day – well, week! – to say the least. Must bad news be cast down on her constantly? It was the essence of feeling empty, though not entirely unfamiliar.

Yeul…

"Damn it," she grumbled as she pulled open the door. This wasn't exactly her thing. Serah normally handled all the shopping and consumerism crap. A store representative had been right there to assist her, bright and smiling.

"Hello, Ma'am. Is there anything that I can help you with?"

Lightning crossed her arms. "I need a new phone." It was absolutely necessary. Without one, what if Yeul had called her back? For anyone else, she would have quit.

"What happened? If you don't mind me asking…" He asked. "You may be eligible for a war-"

Her eyes narrowed. "-It fell." Some lie that was…

"Alright…" The man looked around nervously. "I-Is there a particular brand or model that you are interested in?"

"Something that'll last me temporarily." Lightning picked up something from within her pocket. "My chip. Stick it into something."

"Got it!" The sales rep ran off.

Lightning slipped her fingers through her side-swept curls. Unbeknownst to her, she had developed an audience in the store.

"Sexy ladaaaaay!" A man whistled, passing by her.

Lightning growled in disgust. He was lucky that she was about to leave. Someone tapped her shoulder.

The store rep handed the box over to her. "Here you are, Ms. Farron."

"Thanks, err… Alec." She hoped that his name tag was right.

He smiled. "No problem. Be careful next time."

_**)QQQ(**_

She made her way out of Eden Mall as fast as she could to avoid the attacking salespeople stationed at island-like kiosks. From what she remembered, Bodhum wasn't this annoying.

Lightning pulled out her new phone.

It began to vibrate in her hand. A new call already…

Lightning cleared her throat, "Farron."

"Lightning?"

"Yes. Who is this?"

"Noel."

"How did you get my number?"

"Serah."

"Why are you calling?"

"I heard about the situation with Caius. I'm good friends with him. I thought that I could help you out."

Lightning's eyes squinted. "Why?" After the whole her being selected for the campaign team because of him, she felt a bit weary of Noel's 'help'.

"That's what I do. I wouldn't want you walking around her like a depressed baby because you can't see your girlfriend. Come and pick me up."

* * *

His Pulsian style of dressing had to be trademark now because she recognized the brunette from anywhere on the street. Lightning pulled up near the sidewalk. She unlocked the doors. "Get in, Kreiss."

"Hey…" He waved, smiling nervously. Noel settled into his seat. "Nice uniform." He winked.

"I have to stop somewhere first. We'll have a discussion at my place."

"Your sister…"

"Ok…" Lightning didn't really want to talk about her.

"She sounded really cute. You should hook me up," Noel suggested.

Lightning tried to ignoring him, in hopes that the topic would die.

"We would have a lot of fun. Get married. Build a family. Have tons of children. I can tell that I already like her."

Lightning shook her head, "She has boyfriend. He would probably kill you if he heard you talking like that about her."

"Psshhh… My ass!" Noel laughed. "I'd like to see him try when I steal her from him!"

Lightning parked. "Shut up."

Noel looked around the parking lot. Phoenix had begun to set. "Why are we at Dia Diamonds?" He genuinely wondered. "Aren't they related to that fine chick that's dating-"

"-I don't care." Lighting hopped out, slamming the car door. "If you're not coming, stay put inside the car, please."

_**)QQQ(**_

The store's door dinged as a result of the soldier's entrance.

The red haired man grinned, recognizing Lightning's own oddly colored hair. "Here to pick up your necklace Ms. Farron?" He pulled a box from behind him. "We have it ready."

Lightning bowed her head. "Sir Otto."

She was anxious. Lightning peeked into the box, admiring the piece of jewelry.

"I have a son about your age. Too bad you have taste for woman," He sighed.

Lightning shut the box. That caught her attention. "I don't have much of a taste for red hair either."

Otto coughed. "By any chance have you met my niece? I think you run in the same circle, you being in the military and all…" He trailed off. "Hasn't been the happiest as of late but she's a mighty fine gal."

"No." More and more she grew tired of this fodder about Cid and those in his personal life. She didn't care.

He swiped up a package from one of the nearby consultation desks. Today seemed to be all about packaging. "Could you give this to dashing Ciddy? It's for her. Fragrance from the great Azulon flower of Oerba. She'll love it."

"Tch." She growled, "I'm not a postage service. I had to pay to get you're here." He only looked at her and his smile was so innocent. Lightning pressed her lips together. "Fine."

_**)QQQ(**_

Noel's feet slid from the dashboard. Lightning didn't give him a fair warning that she would be speeding. "What's in the box?"

Lightning kept her eyes forward. "None of your business." Noel frowned. "Tell me about Caius."

He smirked. "Tell me about your sister first."

Lightning rolled her eyes. She gave in. "Like what?"

"Who's her boyfriend?" Noel asked with excitement.

"Snow."

Noel's eyes widened. "Villiers?"

"Yes."

He grinned. Challenge accepted.

"Now about Caius." Lightning pushed on.

Noel took a deep breath. "Caius is like that…" He began. "As you probably already know, Yeul is from Paddra. She's specifically a descendant of the ancient tribe of the Farseers who were known to possess mystical powers and ruled the city for thousands of years. They were on lock down to the general population, so to say… Their power began to crack bit by bit as years went by unrest built and Pulsian technology and society advanced. A part of the Nsu clan, Yeul was next in line to basically become the leader or, 'Seeress' as it is called." Noel shrugged, "She turned it down."

Lightning raised a brow.

"And left." Noel went on. "The Paddran government may have changed but the reclusive Farseers still hold on to tradition. I wanted to become a swordsman. I used to apprentice behind him, which is how I got to know those two. Caius is basically her bodyguard and a damn good one. He doesn't let just anyone be around Yeul let alone date her. Especially with your reputation for being-"

Could people stop!

"-There is no reputation."

"I understand why there are red flags. Any male-figure would have them." Noel closed his eyes and shook his head. "He just doesn't want Yeul to get hurt."

"Whatever."

Noel looked at her. "You're stressing out over her so much and you don't know all of this already? I don't get that if you supposedly like her that much."

"She's Pulsian. I didn't care about her past and culture that much," Lightning admitted with no hesitance. "It's from Pulse. I was never that interested to ask."

"Those things also make a person, you know. It's part of your identity. I'm half Cocoonian," He said pointing to himself. "Jerk."

* * *

The machine scanned her azure iris promptly granting access. The door slid open. Noel jogged behind Lightning, curiously observing around the Farron apartment.

Noel hung up his coat. As she set her bag on the counter, her eyes went directly to their Gui skin hadn't expected anyone to be there. She didn't expect her to be there. Around this time of the day, she was usually with Snow.

Serah lay on the couch, her blue eyes open and almost dead. They stared off into space.

Lightning diverted her attention away and stomped in her combat boots towards her room.

He looked at Lightning and back to the girl in the couch. "Shouldn't we help your sister?" Noel stopped behind her.

"Not my problem." Lightning shrugged. "Leave her to whine and cry."

"You're doing a terrible job at being a big sister."

"Ok. Whatever." Lightning rolled her eyes, shutting the door behind her.

Noel stepped around the couch. He was curious. This must have been the girl he had talked to. He could tell that they were related but she and Lightning definitely didn't look alike to the point of being twins.

Noel waved his hand over her opened eyes to get her attention. They continued to be in the blank trance. "Serah…" He called, gently shaking a limp arm. Though he felt a pulse, the girl didn't respond. Noel called her name again. "Serah," He repeated. A bit disappointed in the unresponsiveness, Noel trudged away to his disgruntled 'compadre'.

The couch squeaked from sudden movement. "Hmm…" A scratchy voice asked from behind, "W-we're you calling me?"

Noel turned back. Serah peered from the top of the couch.

He waved. "Umm… hi," Noel smiled nervously.

She brushed her bangs up from her forehead. "Yeah?" She asked.

"Uh, you're Lightning's sister?" He slapped his forehead. Duh, she was Lightning's sister. Noel scratched his head. "Snow's girl?"

Serah looked away. She lowered herself back into the couch. "I'm not sure."

"Oh… " In no way was he looking for a new female friend. Noel frowned. Something was up. Nevertheless, that was not the most definite answer. He backed away to the kitchen."See you around when you're better. Sleep tight?"

Noel needed to make the call to Yeul. He needed to figure out what was up. He held the phone to his ear. While the tone sounded, He planned on being quiet for Serah. Finally Noel sighed, putting down the phone .

"D-did she pick up?" Lightning entered the kitchens slowly. Anticipation burned in her eyes.

"No." Like many of the calls from Lightning. His didn't go through either. Lightning tapped the counter with her lips pressed tight together as she stared at the ground.

* * *

_A/N-_  
_Thank you for the support. I'd like to give a personal 'Thank You' to **Erifrats101**._

_Laundry. Alcohol Edu.  
__Down goes the forth. I think I'll be able to have a bit more fun with the story now._


End file.
